Intel or AMD for future CPU upgrades

[Pancakesplease]

Hi all,
Not wanting to kick a dead horse here, but am trying to settle on a new build for playing GW2 and D3. Right now I have a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000 and a 5770.....I plan on keeping my 5770, maybe add another in the future, or when I have more cash, upgrade......when it comes to the CPU ANYTHING will be better then what I am running now amirite?

I am a little leery in getting a Intel CPU and chip....I don't want to be stuck into a CPU and mobo, I know the i5 2500k is the best "right now".....then Ivy Bridge will be coming out....really it's a never ending slope of, should I wait till X or by X and upgrade later.....So, I am leaning towards AMD.....really don't care about bulldozer, just want this new build to be able to run smoothly while I play GW2 world PVP fort seiges , and have some upgrading room for the future....without having to change my mobo.

On a different note.....I plan on building this myself, I have changed out my CPU, PSU, hard drives and GPU, but have never built a pc from the ground up...so I am a little nervous.....I have my eye on some of the pre made DIY PC Combos over at NewEgg....has anyone bought one of these?....I feel they are right up my alley, since I am not sure what mobo to pair with what CPU etc....thanks alot in advance.

Krista

 

[Pancakesplease]

hey first Welcome to THF! any idea on your budget? and whats your current mobo? You may have a mobo with the capibility to upgrade. And don't worry about building a PC, over the years it has become really quite easy. and if you have changed out all that before this should be no problem

Hi I have a Dell inspiron 531......It's an ASUS M2N61-AX mobo...I think I have upgraded my CPU to the limit of the board......my budget is around 500 for my new build.....

 

[ghnader hsmithot]

500 Sterling or American Dollar?

 

[Pancakesplease]

American dollar.

 

[rosenberg1979]

i really really don't support the idea of buying an AM3+ board now with the idea of upgrading to bulldozer at some time in the future for several reasons, the top two being that
1)the $120 or so you'd spend on a phenom II only to spend how ever much on the upgrade when you feel you need it, will probably cost more then just buying an i5 and being happy with it for along time,
and
2) AM3+ boards have been out for months with no AM3+ chips to drop into them. That just sounds like a gamble on several levels to me.

If you NEED a new build now, go intel and probably blow your budget.
If you can wait to see how AM3+ and bulldozer fare wait, while saving money.

 

[king smp]

I agree
Intel Sandybridge
Toms did a nice $500 I3-2100 build
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/diy-gaming-pc,2970.html

since you have some hardware already
like the GPU,dvd drive,hard drive
to use for this build
you could go for a I5-2400 or possible I5-2500 instead of the I3-2100
the 2400 is about 190 USD
the I5 2500 is 210 with a free blu ray burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115073


or stay with the i3-2100 and think about upgrading HD or GPU

since you owned a Dell you probably didnt overclock
so by getting the non-K series 2500 saves you money
and gets you a nice burner

 

[Pancakesplease]

thanks for the replies

I have thought about the i3, its locked a duo core, really Intel?! ....no thanks...... I can see Intel releasing an unlocked turbo i3 Ivy Bridge and my mobo not being compatible with it.

Thanks for the tip in keeping my DVD burner, I hardly ever use it...so I don't think I need anything fancy, that will save me some cash

I think I am heading in the AMD direction....I really don't think I like Intel as a company...

 

[dco]

The bad news is no matter which manufacturer you choose, Intel or AMD you will be stuck with the CPU/Mobo. AMD because the AM3 socket is at the end of its lifespan and Intel because..... well it's Intel and they don't seem to like having a socket around for more than 12 months.

The good news is no matter which you choose any 3.0GHz+ quad core CPU from either manufacturer will be sufficient enough to go along side your 5770.

I'd agree with your choice of going with AMD, it will save you a decent amount of money compared to the Intel route. Sure the Intel CPU will out perform it but if your already maxing out games then the performance increase is just overkill and hardly worth the price difference.

 

[king smp]

965 BE FTW

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103727&nm_mc=OTC-Froogle&cm_mmc=OTC-Froogle-_-Processors+-+Desktops-_-AMD-_-19103727

 

[Pancakesplease]

Best answer selected by pancakesplease.

 

[Godiwa]

I will agree with dco and just add a couple of thoughts...

1. look at the games you want to play, which cpu/gpu do they benefit the most from? (shows often in hardware reviews)

2. consider how long you will keep it, I spent a little more and are chugging along nicely with my E8500/HD4870 and it runs quite well even now on it's 3rd year, I usually get new stuff every 3-4 years which also pretty well follows the cycle of the few games I play, I too consider upgrading for Diablo 3 but I will see how much eye candy I can have on with what I got and if not happy then I will most likely upgrade. Mostly because I want as much eye candy as possible while keeping a decent framerate.

 

[ChosenDescent]

Well I was searching for forums about Bulldozer information because Im holding off on my new build for the new processor. Regarding your future build personally I have the 5770 it's a good card for playing any game on the market right now. If it was me, I would wait 2-3 months for the new Bulldozer but if all you care about is running your game smoothly go with the sandy bridge. One problem with going with the i5 your stuck bro, yes it solves your immediate problem but obviously you like video games and in the future even if you bridge your 5770 with another card it might not max out some of the video games coming out in 2-3 years. If you wait for the new Bulldozer and pay some extra cash your set in stone for YEARS!!!

 

[Hellboy]

its not the socket that lasts a year its the chipset for which the chip can plug in to lasts a year

 

[Yargnit]

The Intel Z68 motherboards are supposed to support the Ivy Bridge CPU's minus a few advanced power management features from what I've read.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey